Soccer Parents Should take care to follow Proper Sideline Etiquette.

While enthusiasm and cheering can be inspiring, and it is natural to get caught up in the emotion of the game, soccer parents should take care to follow proper sideline etiquette.

Steps:

Cheers, don't coach. Avoid yelling specific instructions and issuing commands. This can be extremely confusing for a child and possibly contrary to the coach's instructions.

Avoid running up and down the sideline shouting. If you want to follow the action, make sure that you don't distract the players or block the view of contrary to the coach's instructions.

Keep some comments to yourself. Do not speak out to the referee or linesmen. Unless they are complimentary, do not direct comments to members of the opposition.

Don't stand behind the goal. As it is prohibited in youth festivals.
Stand or sit at least 3 to 5 yards back from the sidelines. It is suggested that to sit at the seats allocated for parents.

Demonstrate good sportsmanship by applauding exceptional moves by the opposition.

Tips:

· Practice silence. Sometimes it is more relaxing for both parents and players, and you will likely view the game differently

· Ask your child if they like you to cheer. The answer may surprise you.

· Be positive, never negative. If child loses the ball for example, "way to hustle," is much better than "you can get that ball".

· SUPPORT the kids This means all kids. Make positive comments to players, not negative ones. Don't groan when someone misses the ball. After a loss or a mistake, don't malign the other players. They are children too. Make a rule for yourself - say one positive thing to an opponent each half! Applaud a great save by the opposing goalie, a wonderful pass or a beautiful defensive play.

Forget the constructive criticism. You know, things like "If you only worked on your left foot a little more" or "next time you should pay attention when the coach talks about heading!" Comments need to be unfailingly positive and supportive. Kids take even the mildest criticism as a sign that you don't support them. You job on the sidelines is to revel in their accomplishments and offer a shoulder, a hug or a kiss when everything doesn't go perfectly. If you feel the need to comment on a mistake, how about "Oh, what an unlucky bounce!"

And, please remember that the kids on the other team might be your next-door neighbors. Please don't gloat over the mistake made by an opponent. For heaven's sake, no celebrating over a team shellacking. What if it was your child? How would they feel? How would you feel?

· SUPPORT the Coach Here's a shock, your kid's coach isn't perfect or you might be an ex-national player or you may be a person who hang around with the best coaches and players in town, But, don't make it harder by coaching from the sidelines. Never yell to a player to do something - that's the coach's job. Players HATE to hear instructions from more than one source. Never, never decide that you know best what your child should be doing and complain during the game. If you have an issue, take it up with the coach after the game out of earshot of your child. Here's the best advice ever from a very senior coach that works with some of our players, "Let them play!"

It is a shame that the smallest kids play on the smallest fields allowing them to hear everything that everyone says to them! How many times have we seen a child turn around to a parent and say, "but the coach told me…" It's a sure sign that you are interfering with your child's fun. Let the coach do the coaching. You do the cheering.

· SUPPORT the Referee Okay, this is very simple. Refs make mistakes. But, they are the authority in the game of soccer. If you want your child to be a good sport, respect authority and have fun, NEVER CRITICIZE THE REFEREE. Let's be honest. Most of you don't really know the rules (Laws) of soccer. Most of you don't have a clue about the intricacies of the offside rule. Do you know that your child can be knocked to the ground legally? A legal charge that knocks your son or daughter over is not a foul. Do you know that it is not a penalty for a larger player to out-physical a smaller player for the ball?

But, let's get back to the mistakes. To have games, we must have referees. FAM recruit new refs EVERY YEAR. Does anyone think that a new ref is going to make the right call all the time? Of course not. But, does anyone really think that a ref is going to favor one side or the other? Please, these are games. Games as in fun and play. They are not life or death for anyone especially the ref! Assume the ref will make the same amount of mistakes for both sides. If you can deal with that you will be able to relax and enjoy the game a lot more.

Let's use an example of another area of life to show you what happens if you, the parent, yell at the ref. Pretend you are in school watching your child learn. You don't like the way the teacher has reprimanded your child. So, you scream at the teacher?!? Of course not. We realize that the analogy is not perfect. But, think about it. Do your kids follow your lead in how they interact with the world? Of course they do. If you are a ref screamer, expect your kids to be also. You wouldn't want your child to yell at a teacher and we're sure you don't want them yelling at the ref either.

In any event, we must warn you about an important related topic: Referee abuse. It happens very often. We are not talking about physical assault (although we have seen that too). I'm talking about a loud mouth Dad screaming at new recruited referee who is trying to handle the whistle (refereeing an Under 10 game). I'm talking about a coach (who has never read FIFA's 20 pages of interpretation of the offside rule) calling a referee an "idiot." Refs have been instructed by their organization and they are trying to bring out more and more quality referees each and every year.So, we are back to mistakes. Refs will make them. You will either learn that they are part of the game and refuse to let them ruin your enjoyment of your child's fun. Or, you will keep your mouth shut because you don't want the embarrassment of seeing a red card appear in your direction. Either way, the League will make referee abuse stop.